Socket for ink roller



Dec. 18, 1956 c. w. CHASE SOCKET FOR INK ROLLER 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Feb. 18, 1955 40 INVENTOR.

n /'2 LUaZZ'r Chase Dec. 18, 1956 c. w. CHASE 2,

SOCKET FOR INK ROLLER Filed Feb. 18, 1955 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 \E INVENTOR.

Caz ora [Zlaffr Ciase Dec. 18, 1956 c. w. CHASE SOCKET FOR INK ROLLER L 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Feb. 18,' 1955 llnitedStates Patent SSCKET FOR INK ROLLER Cor'son Walter Chase, Oak Park, EL, assignor to The Printing Press Company, Chicago, iih, a corporation of Illinois Application February 18, 1955, Serial No. 489,009

13 Claims. (Cl. 101-348) The present invention relates to printing presses and more particularly to a socket for mounting ink rollers therein.

It is a general object of the present invention to provide an improved socket for an ink roller which, after initial adjustment, is self-adjusting to accommodate itself to changes in roller diameter due to heat and absorption of ink and which permits substitution of a replacement roller having a difierent diameter without necessity for readjustment.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved socket for an ink roller which enables the roller to bear resiliently and, if desired, with equal force against two ink cylinders laterally spaced from one another.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an improved socket for an ink roller which enables force to be brought to bear resiliently against two ink cylinders, either equally or in predetermined ratio, independently ot-internal forces such as imposed by gravity or by the pressure of auxiliary rollers and cylinders.

It is a further objectof the invention to provide a socket for a printing press roller which may be mounted on the press frame as a unit, requiring only the drilling and tapping of small diameter mounting holes in the frame, and which does not require precise location of the mounting holes.

It'is another object of the present invention to provide a socketforan ink roller in which the roller is held captive .under operating conditionsbut which permits the i'ollerto be readily released for cleaning or replacement. Finallyitisan object to provide an improved socket for an ink .rollerwhich holds the roller securely, which is free of vibration, which is inexpensive, and which requires summers of. attention and. maintenance.

IQ'ther objects and advantages of the invention will besome appaient upon reading the attached detailed descriptionand upon reference -to-the drawings, in which Figure 1. shows an arrangement of ink rollers and cylinders .in a printing-press in which-the present invention may be. employed.

Fig. 2 is-a perspective of an ink roller socket constructed in accordance'with'the present invention, with .certain portions "broken away or slightly distorted to bring out the details of construction.

F-igfi-B is a top-view of the socket in partial section. and with'the yokezarms swung outwardly incident to releasingcthe ink roller.

'Fig. 4is a fragment showing the lost motion between thei'yoke body andyoke arms which is utilized in the locking action.

Fig.5 is a side elevation of the ink roller socket.

Fig.6 is a face view of the socket base plate showing the range of'adjustment.

Fig. 7 is a vertical section taken along the line 77 in Fig- 6. V g M V *FigPSShOWsthe range oflateral self-adjustment provided in the inkroller socket exaggerated for emphasis.

2,774,300 Patented Dec. 18, 1956 Fig.9 is aforce diagram showing the forces acting upon the roller mounted in the present socket.

Fig. 9a is similar to Fig. 9, but shows the forces where one of the rollers is omitted.

Fig. 10 is a fragmentary cross section showing a modified spring mount.

While the invention has been described in connection with a preferred embodiment, it will be understood that I do not intend to limit the invention to such embodiment, but intend to cover all modifications and alternative constructions and uses which are included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

Turning to Figure 1, an ink roller arrangement indicated generally at 10 is fed by ink from a fountain roller 11 and serves to supply a thin and uniform film of ink to plates mounted on a plate cylinder 12.

Included in the path of ink flow are a feed roller 13 and transfer rollers 14--16, which supply a film of ink to the first ink drum 17. Ink is taken from the ink drum by rollers 18, 19, a portion of this ink film being transferred to a second ink drum 20. From the ink drum 20 the film is transferred to the plate cylinder by form rollers 21, 22. Ink is additionally supplied to the form rollers by auxiliary cylinders 23, 24, respectively, which rethe shaft 42 of the ink roller 13. Under normal operating;-

conditions the yoke arms 35, 36 form a rigid unit with the yoke body 34.

Means are provided for mounting the yoke body 34 in .the base plate 33 for rocking movement about an axis which extends at right angles to the axis of the roller. For this purpose the yoke body 34 includes a pair of short rearwardly extending arms 45, 46. The arms are pivoted on pins 47, 43 which are pressed into place in the base plate. To enable the pins to be removed they are tapped at 49, 50 for pull screws. For recessing thearms '45, 46 in the mounting plate, the plate has deep slots of arcuate contour milled in its face, the slots being indicated at 51, 52. The above arrangement permits the yoke to be rocked upwardly and downwardly through a relatively largeangle relative to the press frame. For the purpose of exerting a biasing force upon the roller, the upper portion of the yoke body 34 is engaged by springs 55, 56, which are seated in pockets 57, 58 in thebase plate. Adjusting screws 59, 69 are provided for adjusting the pressure exerted by the springs 55, 56, the adjusting screws engaging pilot discs 61, 62 mounted on the outer ends of the respective springs. The yoke body 34 may be bodily rocked against the spring pressure by means of a bar 63 or other suitable tool inserted in a central aperture 64 at the top of the yoke body.

In accordance with the present invention, the arms 35, 36 are mounted for outward swinging movement away from the bearing capsule 49 about axes arranged generallyat right angles to the rocking axis of the yoke body, to free the bearing capsule 40 so that the roller 18, with bearings attached, may be removed from the press. Thus, as shown in Figs. 2 and 3, the arms 35, 36 are mountedfor pivoting on pins 71, 72, respectively, which extend through a support 73 on the yoke body 34. Projecting inwardlyat the ends of the arms 35, .36 aretmnnion pins 75, 76. For enabling pivoting engagement betweenthe pin-s 75, 76 and the bearing capsule .40, the capsule is provided with trunnion pockets 77, 78, located ;respectively at diametrically opposite points. As will be cylinders 17, 20 with which it rides in contact.

In accordance with one of the features ofthe present invention, novel means are provided for locking the yoke arms 35, 36 in place under normal running conditions,

while permitting the arms to swing outwardly away from the bearing capsule when the roller reaction pressure is released. In the present instance this is accomplished by 7 making the arms axially slidable on their pivots and by providing detent surfaceson flats on'the arms 35, .36,

which mate with registering flats on the yoke b ody when the arms are in their normal operating position.

Referring to Fig. 4, the arm 35 has an angled flat 81, which mates with a flat 82 milled on the lower edge of the support 7370a which the arms are mounted. When the roller is operating normallyunder pressure exerted by the springs 55, 56, the reactive pressureof the cylinders 17, 29 pressesupwardly on the ink roller 18; Such reactive pressure is transmitted to the trunnion pins by the bearing capsule 40, thereby urging the arms 35, 36 vertically upward as viewed in Fig. 2 and seating the flats 81, 82 against one another. The flats not only lock the arms against outward movement but insure that the arms are solidly seated and precisely positioned as long V as reactive pressure is exerted against the roller. When it is desired to remove the roller for purposes of cleaning or adjustment, a bar or similar tool 63 is inserted into the opening 64 in the yoke body. The leverage provided makes it an easy matter to tilt the yoke body into the retracted position shown in Fig. 4 against the com pressive force of the springs 55, 56. Thiscause'sdrop ping movement of the arms 35, 36 relative to the yoke body, which separates the flats 81, 82 so that the parts occupy the positions shown in the fragmentary view,'Fig. 4. With the flats separated, the arms may be pivoted outwardly away from the bearing capsule, as illustrated in Fig. 3, and the roller 18 and the connected bearing capsule, may then. be lifted clear without obstruction.

Replacement of the roller is accomplished simply by reversing the procedure. The roller 18 is placed in its normal position between the adjacent cylinders and the yoke body 34 is rocked backwardly, compressing the springs 55, 56. This enables the arms 35, 36 to be lifted on their pivots and swung inwardly for engagement of the trunnion pins with the trunnion pockets 77, 78. Subsequent releasing of the spring pressure causes seating of the flats and results in locking ofthe socket for continued operation. While it'is truev that rocking of the yoke is accompanied by slight relative axial movement between the roller and the yoke, such relative movement does not interfere withthe action of the socket and is absorbed by relative movement between the bearing and bearing capsule 40p r q In accordance with one of the more detailed features of construction, the mounting plate 33 of the socket is' arranged for pivoting about a central axis and means are provided for clamping the mounting plate in adesired angularposition. This is accomplished as shown in Figs. 6 and. 7 by a central pivot in the form of a stud 85 which is screwed into the back of the base plate along an axis which is generally alined with the roller axis when the roller occupies its normal running position. The stud 85 extends through a suitable aperture bored in the frame indicated at 86 and terminates in. a nut 87 so that V the base plate may pivot through a substantial angle 88 (Fig. '6). The base plate is secured in the desired posi-' tion by means of screws 91, 92, 93 which are received in arcuate slots cut in the base plate and centering about the stud 85. f

. Means are tfurther provided for enabling the roller. 18

to move broadwise over a small range relative to the mounting plate 33 and the press side frame to which it is mounted. In the presentembodiment this is Iaccomemployed at each end of the roller 18. The roller is therefore free to move over a lateral range as indicated a by the dotted outlines 96, 87 (Fig. 8) to find its 0 seated position on the cylinders 17, 20.

One of the primary advantages of the above arrangement is that it enables the roller 18 to. apply forces. to be applied to the, cylinders 17, 20 which are either balanced or which are proportioned in a predetermined ratio even when the roller is acted upon by external forces such as gravity and auxiliary rollers andeven though a roller of slightly different diameter may be substituted. This will be made clear upon referring to Fig. 9 which shows a vector diagram of the forces actingiupon the roller 18 One of the forces is of course, the socket spring force which will be assumed to have the magnitude and direction 98. Another is the known force of gravity acting downwardly upon the roller and indicatedat99. A third is the force 23-18 exerted upon the roller. by the auxiliary cylinder 23, the magnitude of which is known in a particular instance and which'acts along a line which intersectsboth of the centers of rotation.

Opposingthe above three forces are the reactive forces of the two cylinders 17, 20 indicated at 17 18. and 20-48 respectively. Both of these forces also act along lines intersecting the centers of rotation.

With a spring force 98 it will be apparent that the force between the roller 18 and cylinder 17 is about one and one-half times as great as the force between the roller and cylinder 20. Such ratio :will be maintained even'if thelroller 18 changes dimension due to heat or ink absorption and even if, the roller 18 is substituted by one having a slightly dilferent diameter. If it is desired to apply balanced forces againstthe two cylinders for creation of equal flats, the ink roller sockets, one at each end oftheroller, are rotated through an angle A andthe spring pressure is reduced to provide a spring vector 98a. The limited amount of lateral play of the roller 18 provided by the lost motion between the yokeand bearing capsule is desirable since it gives the roller'freedom to assume a desired equilibrium position between the two cylinders under all conditions ,within the range of ad- 7 justment. Once adjusted the settings need' not be changed, if desired, over the life of the press. 7

Where the rollers 23, 24' are not present, a simplified force condition obtains as inFig. 9a..whe re'thelvector 23,18 is omitted. j

One important practical advantage of the presentde- 'vice is that the holesfor the mounting screws need not be located with a high degree of precision and both installation and maintenance may be reduced to a minimum. Under some conditions where it is desired to apply force exerted by the auxiliary cylinder 23 may, in combination, be excessive or the weight acting alone'may be excessive. 56 may be anchored so that force may be exerted either in tension or compression. For example, the springs may be anchored as shown in Fig. 10' where corresponding, parts are indicatedby corresponding reference numerals.

only, a light force the weight of the roller 18 and the To take care of this situation the spring. 55,

While the invention has been described in connection with only one of the rotating elements in the path of flow, namely, roller 18, it will be apparent to one skilled in the art that the invention is fully applicable to all of the resilient rollers. The invention is, furthermore, applicable, to the mounting of steel cylinders where the various features including the adjustment of the direction of forces and ease of removal and replacement are desirable. Thus, in the following claims the terms rollers and cylinders are not necessarily limited to rubber-covered and hard-surfaced elements, respectively, but refer more generally to cylindrical ink-transferring elements regardless of covering.

1 claim:

1. In a printing press the combination comprising a "side frame, a pair of ink cylinders laterally spaced from one another, an ink roller having a shaft and arranged to engage said ink cylinders, a bearing surrounding the end of said shaft, a yoke extending generally in the direction of the axis of said shaft, said yoke having a hinge connection with said frame and arranged perpendicular to the roller axis at one end and having a pivoted connection with said hearing at the other end, means for biasing the yoke relative to the frame, the hinge connection between the frame and the yoke having provision for changing the direction of the hinge axis with respect to the axis of the roller to vary the direction of the force applied to the roller by the yoke so as to proportion the forces applied by the roller to the individual ink cylinders.

, 2. In a printing press the combination comprising a side frame,a pair of ink cylinders laterally spaced from one another, an ink roller having a shaft and arranged to engage said ink cylinders, a bearing surrounding the end of said shaft, a yoke extending generally in the direction of the axis of said shaft, said yoke having a hinge connection with said frame at one end and having releasable arms at the other end for pivotally engaging the hearing, and means for biasing the yoke relative to the frame, the hinge connection between the frame and the yoke having provision for changing the direction of the hinge axis relative to the axis of the roller to vary the direction of the force applied to the roller by the yoke and said yoke providing a lost motion connection between the bearing and said side frame to permit the roller to establish an equilibrium position relative to the cylinders.

3. In a printing press the combination comprising a side frame, a pair of ink cylinders laterally spaced from one another, an ink roller having a shaft and arranged to engage said ink cylinders, a bearing surrounding the end of said shaft, a yoke extending generally in the direction of the axis of said shaft, said yoke having a hinge connection with said frame at one end and having means for pivotally engaging the hearing at the other end, a spring for biasing the yoke relative to the frame, said spring being adjustably mounted to permit development of tension and compression therein depending upon the adjustment, said yoke being so constructed and arranged as to permit limited broadwise movement of the roller in the direction of the hinge axis so that the roller is free to such an equilibrium position relative to the cylinders.

4. In a printing press, the combination comprising a side frame, a pair of ink cylinders laterally spaced from one another, an ink roller having a shaft and arranged to engage said ink cylinders, a bearing surrounding the end of said shaft, a yoke extending generally in the direction of the axis of said shaft and having opposed arms for straddling said bearing, means including trunnion pins for pivotally connecting said arms and the respective sides of said bearing, and means providing a hinge connection between the yoke and the side frame so oriented that said roller is guided along a path of movement between the spaced cylinders, said arms being arranged on said yoke for movement between a normal position in which the 6 ti'unnions are engaged and a second position in which the trunnions are disengaged for removal of the roller and bearing.

, 5. In a printing press, the combination comprising a side frame, a pair of ink cylinders laterally spaced from one another, an ink roller having a shaft and arranged to engage said ink cylinders, abearing surrounding the end of said shaft, a yoke extending generally in the direction of the axis of said shaft and having opposed arms for straddling said bearing, means including trunnion pins for pivotally connecting said arms and the respective sides of said bearing, means providing a hinge connection between the yoke and the side frame so oriented that said roller is guided along a path of movement between the spaced cylinders, said arms being hinged on said yoke for outward swinging movement between a normal position in which the trunnions are engaged and a rollerreleasing position in which the trunnions are disengaged, and disengageable means for locking the arms in the normal position.

6. In a printing press, the combination comprising a side frame, a pair of ink cylinders laterally spaced from one another, an ink roller having a shaft and arranged to engage said ink cylinders, a bearing surrounding the end of said shaft, a yoke extending generally in the direction of the axis of said shaft and having opposed arms for straddling said bearing, means including trunnion pins for pivotally connecting said arms and the respective sides of said bearing, means providing a hinge connection between the yoke and the side frame so oriented that said roller is guided along a path of movement between the spaced cylinders, at least one of said arms being pivoted on said yoke for movement between a normal position in which the trunnions are engaged and a roller-releasing position in which the trunnions are disengaged, and means actuated by the reaction force transmitted to said one-arm from said roller for locking the arm in its normal position.

7. In a printing press, the combination comprising a side frame, a pair of ink cylinders laterally spaced from one another, an ink roller having a shaft and arranged to engage said ink cylinders, a bearing surrounding the rid of said shaft, a yoke extending generally in the direction of the axis of said shaft and having opposed arms for straddling said bearing, means including trunnion pins for pivotally connecting said arms and the respective sides of said bearing, means providing a hinge connection between the yoke and the side frame so oriented that said roller is guided along a path of movement between the spaced cylinders, pivot connections on said yoke for pivoting the arms thereto for movement between a normal position in which the trunnions are engaged and an outwardly swung position in which the trunnions are disengaged, means including a spring coupled to said yoke for biasing the roller into engagement with the cylinders, and means including detents at said pivot connections responsive to the biasing force for locking the arms in their normal position.

8. In a printing press, the combination comprising a side frame, a pair of ink cylinders laterally spaced from one another, an ink roller having a shaft and arranged to engage said ink cylinders, a socket base having a central pivot connection with the side frame together with manual means for clamping the base in a desired orientation relative to the side frame while maintaining the same parallel thereto, a bearing generally alined with the pivot on said base and axially spaced from the base for receiving said shaft, and a yoke pivoted at its ends to said base and said bearing respectively about axes which are parallel to one another and at right angles to the roller axis to provide bodily movement of the bearing so that the roller is guided along a plane of movement between said spaced cylinders.

9. In a printing press, the combination comprising a side frame, a pair of ink cylinders laterally spaced from oneanother, an ink roller having a shaft and arranged to engage said ink'c ylinders, a base plate having a central pivot connection with the side frame, manually operated means for locking the base plate in a desired orientation relative to the-side frame, a bearing generally alined with the pivot 'on said base plate and axially spaced from the .base plate for receiving said shaft, a yoke pivoted at its ends to said base plate and said bearing respectively to provide bodily movement of the hearing so that the roller is guided along a straight-line path of movement said trunnion pins, said yoke being hinged to the side frame so that said roller is guided along a path of movement between the spaced cylinders, the root diameter defined by said pockets being less than the spacing of said trunnions so that the roller is free to move broadwise through a limited range to assume an equilibrium position between said cylinders.

11. In a printing press, the combination comprising a side frame, a pair of ink cylinders laterally spaced from' one another, an ink roller having a shaft and arranged to engage said ink cylinders, a bearing telescoped over the end of said shaft, a yoke having a yoke body and having opposed arms extending along the axis of said shaft and having normal pivoted engagement with said bearing, a base plate on the side frame having a pivoted mounting for said yoke so arranged that the roller is guided for bodily movement along a centered path of movement relative to saidink cylinders, a spring interposed between 7 said base plate and said yoke for causing the roller to bear against said cylinders with resilient pressure, said yoke arms having pivot connections with said yoke body enabling them to be swung laterally away from said bearing, cooperating flats on said yoke body and on the respective arms alined with one another when the arms are in: normal position, said pivot connection including provision for lost motion and 'said flats'being so arranged that the lost motion'is' takenup incident to application of pressure ,from'sa'id jspring upon saidroller to produce seating of said flats lockinglya'gainst one another while "permitting the flats to 'be unseated and the arms to be,

swung outwardly upon manual retraction of the yoke body against the force of the spring for removal of thebearing and roller.

12. In a printing :press, the combination comprising a side frame, a pair of ink cylinders laterally spaced from one another, an ink roller having a shaft and arranged to engage said ink cylinders, abearing surrounding'the end of said shaft, a yoke extending generally in the direction of the axis of [said shaft, said'yokehaving a hinged connectionwith said frame at one 'end' on an axis perpendicular to the roller axis and having means for pivotally engaging the'bearing at the other end, means including a spring for biasing the yoke relative to the frame, the ends of said spring being captive in said yoke and frame respectively and having provision for adjusting the effec- -tive length thereof so that the spring applies either tension or compression to the yoke, depending upon the adjustment. r 1 a t 13. In a printing press, the combination comprising a sideframe, a pair of ink cylinders laterally spaced from one another, an ink roller having a shaft and arranged to engage said ink cylinders, a bearing surrounding the end of said shaft, a yoke having athinged connection with the a a frame and having a-hingedtconnection with the bearing, said hinge connections being spaced from oneanother in the direction of the roller axis and having axes which are parallel to one another and at right angles to the roller ,aXis, and means including an adjustable spring acting upon theyoke and reacting'against the frame for biasing the roller against said ink cylinders.

; References Cited in the of this patent t FOREIGN PATENTS Great Britain" July so, 192s Jan. 20, 1931 237,454 460,080 Great Britain 

